


The Beastly Nobleman and the Fair Lady Belle

by Of_Princes_and_Savages



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Enchanted Forest, Gen, Multi, Romance, background ships aplenty, based on a real story, the first 4 chapters are from my early writing days two years ago so if it seems odd: I know it is
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-04-08
Updated: 2018-01-21
Packaged: 2018-05-30 18:38:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 13,760
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6435817
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Of_Princes_and_Savages/pseuds/Of_Princes_and_Savages
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A bizarre looking child comes to the court of King Midas, with golden scales and riotous hair and crooked, sharp teeth like a monster. The kindly king takes the boy under his wing, and as the boy grows into a man named Rumpelstiltskin, he finds friends among the other nobles. And his friends then try and find him a wife...but who would marry a beast such as he?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. I. The Boy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I blame BritishKitten for everything: Long story, see End Notes for why.

The lands of King Midas were prosperous ones in prosperous times. At the time, there were no wars, no famines, no peasants paying unreasonable taxes. All was peaceful and the future looked bright for everyone.

Except for the creature escorted none-to-gently before King Midas himself on this day, by a large guard named Hordor. Escorted was a kind term, as Hordor had the creature yanked off his feet by the collar of his ragged shirt and dropped unceremoniously before the king like a cat leaving a dead mouse at his feet. The court assembled in the throne room gasped and shied back as the creature stumbled to it's feet, one lady shrieked and fainted in her husband's arms.

"We found this goblin harassing the kitchen staff, Your Highness," Hordor announced, gripping the creature by it's thin shoulder a wee bit tighter than necessary. "I was going to lock it in the dungeons, but the cook insisted you decide what to do with it."

Through the still-opened throne room doors, a short-but-portly older woman bustled in, her blondish hair curling out from under her white cap and an apron bunched in her hand as though she hadn't time to put it down. Her face was pink and she huffed in a most unladylike manner as though she had run partway there, but she wasn't too winded to glare at Hordor (who was a solid foot and some taller than her,) and bob a curtsy to the king.

"You're Majesty, please, don't you pay no mind to what he said," she gave another vicious glare to the guard. "This boy wasn't harassing anyone. He came to the back door and was asking for scraps, he offered to scrub pots and pans. He didn't harass anybody and I thought he'd run away with the food once I have him an apple. The poor thing's scared half to death, he's not a goblin, he's just a boy!"

"No boy looks like this! This is a beast!" Hordor argued.

King Midas tuned out the quarrel and looked down at the boy. Creature. Hmm.

Well it didn't look like any boy Midas had ever seen. He was small, but the king would place his age at about twelve, perhaps, a reedy little thing with hands that fidgeted with the hem of his shirt. His skin was greenish-greyish-gold, lightly scaled, and his riot of wiry brown curls hid his face. He stood there hunched over, fidgeting anxiously, and Midas decided that he was more boy than beast. He smiled and stepped down from his throne, kneeling in front of the small boy.

"I'm King Midas," he smiled up at the boy, who stopped fidgeting at least. His features were sharp, from his aquiline nose to his prominent cheekbones, and when his lips parted over his teeth, Midas could see they were sharp and yellowed. His eyes were very large, reptilian almost, with a golden-brown color and flecks of silver and bronze. But his expression was pure surprise that anyone would speak to him. "Do you have a name?"

The boy swallowed thickly. "Rum-Rumpelstiltskin, Y-your Highness...I-I didn't mean any harm, I was j-just hungry. I apologize-"

"Where are your parents Rumpelstiltskin?" Midas asked. "Don't you have a home somewhere? Are you lost?"

Rumpelstiltskin shook his head. "N-no sir. 'n not lost, I've got no home...an-an' Papa left me ages ago..."

Midas studied the boy from head to toe for another moment. "Would you like a home, Rumpelstiltskin? You would have to learn to read, and write, and I don't imagine it would be easy, but I would like to make you my ward if you'll allow it."

"Your Majesty!" an advisor practically jumped forwards. "You can't keep such a beast-"

"He's no beast, he's a boy!" Midas turned on the advisor with a sharp glare. "He offered to scrub pots and pans in exchange for scraps of food! A beast would only take what he wanted, or eat one of the kitchen maids. Don't forget that we of the court were born nobles, we've never had to work for our suppers. We learned our letters and numbers for stuffy old tutors, not because it was necessary for survival. I will give young Rumpelstiltskin a chance to prove his worth before I decide he's a dumb beast. That is only fair, now does anyone else have anything to say about it?"

No one in the court was going to argue with the King. No one said anything.

Midas stood up and lightly brushed Hordor's big hand off of the boy's slight shoulder. "Mrs. Potts," he acknowledged the cook. "Would you see Rumpelstiltskin to a room? Thank you for speaking up in his defense."

Mrs. Potts nodded, then smiled kindly down at the gold-scaled boy. "Right this way, dear, come along. I'll bring you something to eat, too, would you like that?"

Rumpelstiltskin nodded, more than a little dumbfounded at this turn of events. Unless he'd misheard the absurdly kind and generous king, he was know a ward of the crown...

He went from a homeless peasant to a nobleman-in-training in the span of ten minutes...

He would have to work very hard not to screw this up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In the 1500s, a boy covered in hair from head to toe like a wild beast came to the King of France. Instead of turning him away, the King took the boy under his wing. The boy, Petrus Gonsalvus, grew up to be a clever and learned nobleman despite his appearance. His friends arranged a marriage between him and a noblewoman named Lady Catherine. She fainted on their wedding night, terrified that he would eat her alive like a rabid wolf. (He did not.) Eventually, they fell in love, and had some kids that even looked hairy like Petrus. 200 years later, this became the inspiration for Beauty and the Beast...which is pretty cool. In a conversation in the Comment Section BritishKitten dared me to Rumbelle it. So I am. XP


	2. II. The Beast

Rumpelstiltskin's room was, perhaps, plain to a king or nobleman. But to him it was the biggest space he had ever had to call his own...ever.

The bed alone was the size of a hay wagon, covered in silky sheets and a thick velvet coverlet. There were four tall, carved wooden posts that held up a big sheet over the bed like a tarp, and he wondered if the roof leaked. That would explain why there was a cover over the bed, yes. So water didn't drip on the nobles. It also explained why Rumpelstiltskin was given this room: For all that it was beautiful and clean and spacious, if the roof leaked, it wasn't fitting for the other nobles.

The window was huge, between tall red velvety curtains, and it gave the boy a view of the exquisite Royal gardens. Green hedges and bloom bushes, a white marble fountain glistening in the late afternoon sun, and winding gravel pathways. Amazing.

Rumpelstiltskin was reminded of Mrs. Potts' presence by her voice saying, "And right here, behind this screen-" Rumpelstiltskin noticed a large panel of pale wood with black forest trees painted along the lower half, "-is where you can change clothes or bathe. I think you should start with the bath, personally. I'll see about finding you something clean to wear."

Rumpelstiltskin nodded. He wasn't sure what to say, so he decided to be as politely silent as possible. Mrs. Potts seemed to understand, because she smiled very kindly and gave his shoulder a little squeeze. "Don't be frightened dear," she soothed. "King Midas is a good man. He won't hurt you, he's a father himself y'know, I don't think he'd willingly hurt a fly let alone a child. Don't you worry about that great bully Hordor either, he's just that, a big bully."

"Yes'm," Rumpelstiltskin nodded again, slowly, shifting from foot to foot. "Th-thank you."

Mrs. Potts tugged on one of his scraggly curls that time, with a soft laugh that made the boy feel...secure. The King had declared him a ward, yes, but it was also nice to know that this nice old lady wasn't repulsed by him-actually stood up _for_ him,-went a long way in his books.

"Something tells me you're going to make this castle a little more interesting, Rumpelstiltskin."

* * *

Learning numbers wasn't as hard as Rumpelstiltskin thought it would be. As long as one minded what symbol was being used (the little crosses meant adding numbers together, but just the little dash meant taking them away,) it wasn't too difficult. The letters were a bit harder. Probably because there were so many of them, and they made different sounds. " _Good_ " only sounded like it should be spelled " _gud_ ", and the tutor explained that two O's together could either make a long " _ooh_ " or a shorter sound more suited to a U.

Yes, letters were harder.

But academically, Rumpelstiltskin was told that he wasn't doing terribly at all. King Midas seemed to think he was doing very well, actually. Since he wasn't used to doing well, Rumpelstiltskin initially thought the King and Mrs. Potts were just being nice. The first three tutors he had didn't last longer than a week before Rumpelstiltskin was introduced to Mistress Gauss, who wore a gray bonnet and cape everywhere that fluttered like wings, and had a sharp, long nose like a beak with her spectacles perched across the bridge.

She looked like a bird, Rumpelstiltskin thought, but Mistress Gauss was a nice old dame who got Rumpelstiltskin off to a good start with his studies. Mistress Gauss was the mother of Princess Abigail's governess. Rumpelstiltskin had seen the eight-year-old princess around in the gardens, and once when Midas invited him to their table for dinner

( _Which had been awful, Rumpelstiltskin wasn't sure which one of the many pieces of extra cutlery to use and he got disapproving looks from everyone when he picked up a lengthy green stalk someone called asparagus by his fingers and ate it. Midas looked mildly amused and deliberately used his fork on the stalk so that Rumpelstiltskin got the point, and afterwards said he didn't need to take dinner with them if it made him so uncomfortable, so ever since Rumpelstiltskin had been eating in the kitchens with Mrs. Potts and the little kitchen maid who was her right-hand man. Maid?_ )

Princess Abigail was a blonde thing with a nose that reminded Rumpelstiltskin of a weasel, and she was terribly stuffy for a child, he thought. But she wasn't mean, just a bit snobbish, and she didn't mind that Rumpelstiltskin looked like a sparkly gold lizard so much. She sat up straighter on the garden bench where she'd snuck away from her governess for one afternoon, playing with a knight's son-Frederick, though Abigail kept calling him Freddie,-and she said quite plainly, "My papa has so much gold, I'm rather used to it, you know. Besides, you don't smell nasty, and no one has been eaten. Therefore you must not be a proper beast."

Frederick was a simple boy, but honest. He nodded from where he sat in the grass, waving the stick that served as his sword around lazily. "So whatcha gonna be when you grow up in court Rum?" Rumpelstiltskin's name had been shortened down to 'Rum' by the pair as it was far too long for them. "Abby's, gonna be a Queen, and I'm gonna be a knight. What were your parents?"

"I don't know."

"Hmm...well, if you wanna be a knight, you could start training right away as a page. As soon as I'm eleven, that's what I'm gonna do!"

Rumpelstiltskin wouldn't wish ill on the daughter of his patron, or her kind-hearted friend, but he didn't spend a lot of time with them because they...well they weren't very bright. He suspected they would marry as soon as Abigail was snatched away by a dragon and Sir Frederick rode to her rescue on a white charger, or some fairy-tale nonsense like that. He himself didn't have any desire to be a knight, he didn't like how the pages whispered and snickered when he thought he wasn't paying attention to them, and he disliked most of the knights and guards even more.

So, he stuck to his studies with Mistress Gauss. He learned to read and write soon enough, and learned to read in a few more languages on top of the obvious one too. He learned about stars, learned about history, learned a bit about politics. Mistress Gauss said he didn't need to learn anything more about politics with a smile when he asked, "So is all politics about barter and trade and outwitting who doesn't wanna trade with you, and knowing when to do what?"

Mistress Gauss had also taught him how to work a needle and thread. She always brought a bit of sewing to his lessons, so it really only seemed natural. And Rumpelstiltskin had something of a gift with needlework. He took to keeping a spool and needle in his pocket, and this came in handy when Princess Abigail tore the hem of one of her frilly dresses in the gardens.

He mended it quickly before her governess could find her again, and suddenly a few of her little royal friends who had ripped a sleeve here or lost a button on their coats there. When a Duke who had never been very kind to him but was all smiles and flattery came up to him and asked if he would mind putting the last touches on his wedding suit since his tailor was ill, Rumpelstiltskin thought nothing about charging him for it.

The Duke turned an interesting shade of purple in the face, but he paid the price anyway. And using the gold thread on the gaudy green velvet, Rumpelstiltskin could say it was some of his finest work regardless of colors.

The court seemed to agree.

In short order, he became the tailor-away-from-home for more than a few of them. Mistress Gauss was delighted to show him how to make clothes so he could expand his repertoire, and when the first debutante entered his lair (an unused storage room where he started keeping his projects,) to ask for a blue gown that would match the slippers she brought him, he provided it. And it was splendid.

King Midas actually laughed and applauded, and even Princess Abigail grinned when they heard he'd become something of a noble tailor. Rumpelstiltskin was unspeakable glad that his patron approved, because he'd been worried about what exactly he would do with his future when he came of age. Now at least he knew he had a decent trade to turn to.

It was this trade that won him his first love...and subsequently his first broken heart.

A lower-ranking noblewoman heard about him and brought him a bright red dress to mend. Rumpelstiltskin nearly pierced his finger with the needle because he'd never had a woman smiled and sit on the edge of his work table and nudge him with her little feet and compliment his skill as a tailor before. He very nearly swallowed his tongue when she kissed him on the cheek. And just like that he was hooked on Cora.

She came back without a dress for him to fix and asked if he would help her with her embroidery...and then she showed him a great deal more. At the time he was fifteen, and convinced that she loved him. So, "heartbreak" barely even touched the surface of how he felt when she pretty much showed up to one of their meetings in the garden, smiled, and said, "I'm marrying Prince Henry."

She left less then twenty-four hours after that, and Rumpelstiltskin numbly wished Henry better luck with her. The Prince would be lucky if Cora didn't kill him after they had a child, like a black widow spider.

* * *

The first real friend he made, when he was about sixteen, was the second son of a nobleman from some backwater country or other, who wouldn't shut up about his first son _The War Hero_.

Victor Frankenstein, a sandy-haired boy who was alright quite infatuated with women for a thirteen-year-old, was more likely to be found in the library reading medical texts than out playing swordsman. He may have talked a good game, but Victor had never so much as even kissed a girl before. Rumpelstiltskin knew this because when Princess Snow kissed him on the cheek kindly he turned bright red to the roots of his hair.

Rumpelstiltskin felt that by the time Victor was his age, he'd be fending off maidens with a stick. Or perhaps the other way around, no, _definitely_ the other way around...

Still, Victor was good company, more _interested_ by his skin than _repulsed_. Rumpelstiltskin had long ago taken to wearing high-necked collars and cuffs that covered him down to his wrists, trying to hide as much skin as he could while also conveying that he didn't want to be touched. So Victor, prodded the back of his scaly hand, examining his dark nails, and asked, "Have you always looked this way or did it develop over time?"

He eventually declared he hadn't the foggiest of ideas what caused Rumpelstiltskin to look the way he did and declared him one of a kind. This wasn't too long after a young noble was sent to court from Hatfield and fairly pushed his way into their group with a crazy grin and a ridiculous hat.

"Really I was banished," he confided. "My father said I would drive him mad before he could send me away for knight training, so now I'm s'posed to learn my manners from the Duchess, don't you know?"

Jefferson was possibly legally mad, and quite possibly the product of one too many cousins marrying. (Rumpelstiltskin suggested it and Victor said it was more than medically possible, so they decided it was the truth.) But for all his craziness, Jefferson was friendly and chatty and could go anywhere in the castle with ease, something even Rumpelstiltskin couldn't quite accomplish. His eccentricities also left him a bit of an outcast, so he was more than welcome to join them wherever they were brooding.

Although it was quite hard to brood when Jefferson was telling them about Mrs. Potts' kitchen maid scrambling to replace a dish of rat poison she'd accidentally placed on a tray with salt.

(She was successful.)

By then Rumpelstiltskin had turned eighteen, and King Midas declared him Sir Rumpelstiltskin. It was just a title, no lands, and Rumpelstiltskin's only income remained his trade in tailoring for the nobles who, unless they wanted his needles and thread, either pretended he didn't exist or avoided him like a plague.

But then a Viscount by the name of Lord Weaving showed up to present his daughter Milah to court. Milah was a stunning young creature with raven hair and blue eyes, a witty tongue and boundless confidence. Rumpelstiltskin was smitten for the first time since Cora, and Lord Weaving made sure to introduce them. Milah didn't seem phased in the slightest by his appearance and that was just icing on the cake for Rumpelstiltskin. He planned to ask for Milah's hand...but then two things happened.

The first was that Lord Weaving found out that Rumpelstiltskin didn't have a fortune or lands. It was just a title, and he was just a tailor among the noblemen with the appearance of a monster. The second, which really happened first, was that Rumpelstiltskin found Milah sitting on the lap of a strange dark-haired man in a leather coat in the gardens, kissing with their hands all over each other. He didn't do anything in his shock, but the next day when Milah straight out told him that she wouldn't marry a penniless, ugly peasant, Rumpelstitlskin bit back, "I wouldn't marry a whore who courts a noble and snogs with a stranger in the gardens anyway!"

 _Oh_ , she didn't like that.

Lord Weaving and his daughter retreated from the court with their heads held so high, even though Rumpelstiltskin hadn't breathed a word to anyone, even the other nobles called them snobby fortune hunters. Later, Rumpelstiltskin heard, Milah had run off with a certain Captain Jones, a pirate, and Lord Weaving had to sell off a great deal of his assets. Jefferson grinned when he revealed the whole story to him and Victor and declared, "It couldn't happen to nicer people."

That may have been true, but Rumpelstiltskin was still left disillusioned about love.

With two women who found him inferior and ugly, the only thing keeping him among the nobility a skill for tailoring and the support of the Royal Family, Rumpelstiltskin knew there was one undeniable, universal truth: _No one could ever love him_.

* * *

Victor and Jefferson were good friends, and even the young Prince David that King George had sent to win over Princess Abigail had become something of a loyal companion. (Abigail was staunchly devoted to Sir Frederick and even David didn't have his heart in it, making heart-eyes with Princess Snow White whenever she was in the room.) Rumpelstiltskin rolled his amber eyes and waved off their attempts at trying to console him, or worse, try to encourage him to go out and try to find a girl. He told them he was quite happy being...whatever the male equivalent of a spinster was.

He may have used that exact phrase too.

So, at thirty years old, a good eighteen years since he came to the court of King Midas, Rumpelstiltskin had his work as a tailor, and his three loyal friends. That was all he needed. He even liked playing up his beastliness at social events,-something that usually made Jefferson burst into giggles that did nothing to enhanced his own reputation,-especially using a high-pitched, trilling voice and even more hand movements than usual. It kept most of the sneering nobles at bay, and there were few pleasures greater than watching them babble polite excuses and run away at a serene pace.

He was quite content.

That's what he kept telling himself...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the pre-Belle years, but she'll appear up next. I'm departing from all but the bare bones of the Petrus Gonsalvus story here, because I honestly don't know how he was brought up. Also, in the original story, his wife Catherine fainted. And we all know that in the pairing of Rumbelle, Rumple would be the one most likely to faint.
> 
> I think of Princess Abigail as sort of a Veronica Lodge from the _Archie_ comics. She's rich, she gets everything she wants, and she's a bit bratty, but she's not cruel and will usually pull through when called upon. She and Frederick are supposed to be living happily-ever-offscreen in Storybrook these days, I hear. Good for her!


	3. III. The Beauty

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heeeeeere's Belle! I don't think this will exceed five chapters, so consider this the halfway mark. Barring epilogue.

When her mother died last year from a fever that swept through the Marchlands, Belle decided she shouldn't be presented at court the following month.

For one thing, Lady Colette was a beloved figure and all the Marchlands mourned her loss. Especially Belle and her father. For another, more practical reason, Belle didn't want to risk bringing the fever to another kingdom, something the noblemen eager to wed her or marry her off to their sons agreed with so quickly that Belle had to laugh.

To be presented at court as Lady Belle of Avonlea had never been very interesting to Belle. Because, while not a vain girl, Belle knew her beauty and the prosperity of Avonlea's ports would make her a highly sought-after prize in the court. One offer too good for her father to refuse and Belle's consent would be a mere formality. She'd be Lady Whatshisname by next June. If her father had his way, at all, then Belle would be married off to Gaston, a Duke's son who was a great hunter of game and women.

Belle loved her papa. She did.

But it was all she could do to keep from strangling him when they arrived at Midas' palace.

Sir Maurice was an old knight who, through exemplary service, had been granted the lands of Avonlea by King Midas. Belle's father was a bit awkward at these sort of social events unless he could hide in a corner with the other war horses and knights, sipping ale and trading tall tales. That was how he was introduced to Gaston, Belle would wager, and she knew very well that Gaston was just looking for a pretty little wife to decorate his arm and bed, and bear his hulking sons. There was always a kernel of truth to gossip about nobles, and sometimes it wasn't even all that hard to see.

Gaston was...handsome. And conceited, and boorish, and Belle had dodged his ham-fisted attempts at affection more than once when he'd come to visit. Her mother was of the same mind, and had been in the process of dissuading Maurice from making a match with Gaston when she died. Belle felt terribly selfish sometimes for being grateful that Gaston gave her a year's reprieve when her mother died. And she wasn't sure how exactly to communicate to her father, now, that she didn't _want_ to marry Gaston.

Because he wasn't picking up on any of her hints at all.

Maurice was a good man, but not the most in-tuned father in the land. All the suitors he introduced to Belle since she was fifteen were tall, handsome, broad-shouldered, and old-fashioned. Old-fashioned in the sense that they thought being married to a woman meant he owned her. It was introductions like that, especially after the second-to-last suitor had come out and said that he'd be sure she didn't read so much when they were married, that made Belle wonder if her father was going senile. He spoke highly of his late wife, Colette, and her independence and intellect and free-spirit, but didn't seem to acknowledge that Belle was the same.

But she loved him, so, Belle put up with his latest tale about what a stand-up guy Gaston was with a stiff smile.

 _'If I don't keep reminding myself of that,'_ she added. _'I'll go mad.'_

* * *

The debutant ball would be held tomorrow night. Belle made her way around the large, gleaming palace of King Midas, trying very hard not to get lost, and meeting new nobles along the way. She was nearly tackled by Lady Ruby, who crushed her in a hug so tight Belle's ribs ached.

"You're here!" Ruby squealed. "I thought you weren't going to come! You have no idea how much I missed you last year, oh Belle, it was no fun without you! Ariel's going to be so glad you could make it!"

Belle extricated herself from her friend's arms and grinned up at the taller girl. Lady Ruby of Wolffstein was a beautiful, willowy girl with dark hair and green eyes and a toothy smile. Word in the court was that she was practically engaged to a nobleman somewhere around there, they were just waiting on Lady Ruby's grandmother to recover fully from a bad health scare to announce it. Ariel was sixth (seventh?) in line to the throne of Atlantica behind a flock of elder sisters Belle couldn't name to save her life, a very sweet and bubbly redhead that Belle had befriended quickly, and was also scheduled to debut tomorrow.

"I missed you too Ruby, but I don't think I'd have come if-"

"Oh no," Ruby cut in with a purely dejected look on her pretty face. "Your father's _still_ trying to marry you off to that mountain?"

Belle nodded, but also giggled. Ruby and Ariel weren't any more fond of Gaston than she. At first glance, they knew he was all wrong for their friend. Ruby crinkled her nose at Gaston's enthusiasm for hunting, which really did border on the obsessive, and called him a mountain because he was, "Big, thick, and makes your life difficult when you try to get around him."

It was very well said, so Belle never did bother to correct her.

"Papa... _means_ well," Belle shrugged. "I suppose I'll see if I'm engaged tomorrow or not. I don't think Gaston will hesitate in moving his suit forward if he gets the chance, and Papa is eager to see me married as soon as possible. I think he's afraid that I'll be alone. Or maybe he just wants to see grandchildren. I don't know..."

The two girls began walking, Belle comfortable to let Ruby take the lead as the taller girl led her down to the gardens. Ruby's bloodline was decidedly lacking in male involvement after her grandfather died. Her grandmother raised her, and her mother had run off to become some sort of revolutionary somewhere. Belle envied her in times like this, when she was trying to find a positive aspect of her situation and Ruby simply sniffed airily.

"Well if he wants grandchildren the size of cart horses, he's on the right track."

Belle laughed again, and changed the topic over to lighter things. She tried to pose a few questions to Ruby, trying to finagle the older girl into dropping the name of her almost-betrothed, but Ruby was proving to be good at keeping her secret. For once.

They had rounded a corner of hedges then, and a pond came into view. It was a nice-sized pond dotted with green duckweed and pink water lilies, with willow trees and one large oak tree rimming the bank. Beneath the oak tree a few young men were fooling around, and one sat in the dark shadow of the oak tree on a wrought iron bench.

One of the young men was a knight in King Midas's service, Belle could tell from his uniform that he was an important, high-ranking knight at that. The other man holding a sword playfully sparring with him was a fair-haired nobleman wearing practical leathers. A young man wearing a bizarre hat was rooting for "Charming" while the nobleman reading a thick book seemed to be ignoring the lot of them.

Belle couldn't see the fifth man in the shade. She couldn't even really see what he was doing. It was something with his hands, perhaps he was reading too? Or carving a block of wood?

Belle turned to ask Ruby if she knew who that was, but the taller girl was focused on the reader entirely. If Belle were a wagering woman, she grinned, that was her mystery-man right there.

" _Sooo_ ," Belle folded her hands behind her back. "Are you going to introduce me to your friend?"

"Friend? Who?" Ruby blinked. "Oh, you-Oh, that's just Princess Abigail's fiancé and some of his friends. Prince David, Jefferson of Hatfield..."

"Ah, yes. So shall I flirt with the gentleman reading the book or will you tell me about your own fiancé?" Belle grinned, and Ruby blushed. (Belle couldn't flirt to save her life, but her comment achieved the desired affect.)

Her friend pursed her lips, then smiled shyly. Ruby's shy smiles were usually reserved for when she was in a rare mood of insecurity. "His name is Victor, he's one of Lord Frankenstein's sons. His brother Gerhardt is a knight errant, but Victor is more...scholarly. He's got a reputation as a womanizer, but he's really not that way Belle, he's sweet and I really, _really_ like him."

Ruby had a reputation as a flirt herself. Belle could tell her friend meant every word, and put her hand on Ruby's arm as she smiled. "Does Granny know?"

"I'd be surprised if she didn't," her friend snorted. "You know my grandmother, Belle, you can't keep anything secret from her!"

The Countess Lucas of Wolffstein was a formidable old noblewoman. While Ruby had a reputation as a flirt, certainly, no nobleman dared to press his luck with her. Aside from Ruby's own reputation as a spitfire, the rumor was that Countess Lucas-who close friends simply called Granny,-had a crossbow specifically for keeping undesirables at bay. It was a rumor that Belle fully believed in because she had seen the crossbow herself once-

"Belle!" a deep, male voice boomed...and her heart sank. "How wonderful to see you again, you look lovelier than ever."

Ruby rolled her eyes as Gaston (who knew how he'd moved so quickly,) planted himself on the path in front of Belle with a blinding smile that was sure to be charming. If you were charmed by things that were shallow and slimy. He scooped up her little hand in his big paw and kissed it, completely oblivious to the annoyance on both girls' faces as he grinned again and added: "Your father said you were exploring the castle. I thought you might enjoy a guided tour."

Belle didn't exactly hate Gaston. (She wasn't actually sure if she was capable of truly hating someone...) But she didn't particularly like him either. He was too cocky, too arrogant, and decidedly too vain for her tastes. He only had his sights set on her because she was the only noblewoman that he couldn't sway with a pretty word or warm look. For Gaston to consider settling down, he must've been getting desperate...or maybe his reputation was catching up with him.

She pasted on a false smile and gently extracted her hand from his grip. "Thank you, Sir Gaston, but my native guide is already here. Have you met Lady Ruby, the future Countess of Lucas?"

Gaston's grin stiffened slightly as Ruby gave him one of her own wolfish grins. Apparently even a dullard like Gaston had heard of the Lucas reputation. Maybe there was hope for him yet, Belle thought impishly. "Ah...of course, Lady Ruby," Gaston bowed. "A pleasure to meet you. Might I join you ladies for your walk?"

_Then again..._

Ruby hooked her arm through Belle's, pulling her back half a step. "Thank you, sir, but I know my way around very well."

"I'm certain you do, my lady, however it's not safe for maidens to walk around unescorted in these grounds," Gaston pressed, walking towards them heedlessly. "Haven't you heard of the beast of King Midas's court? He could be lurking around any shadowy corner. It would put my mind at ease to know you were protected from harm."

His condescending tone, almost like they were silly children and he was doing them a favor with his presence, irritated Belle. She could practically feel Ruby bristling, and braced herself to defuse the situation before it could begin--

"So why don't you leave them with two capable knights and a prince?"

Belle turned to see the man wearing the hat standing behind her and Ruby. (How _did_ these men move so quietly?) He had dark hair and blue eyes, and a wide grin that was far too calm to be comforting. Ruby's lips quirked up in a smile as the man put a hand on her and Belle's shoulders, and his touch didn't feel invasive at all. Gaston, though, scowled, as if the stranger had personally offended him. (Knowing the size of his ego, though, perhaps he had?)

"Lord Hatfield," Gaston acknowledged frostily. "You're one to talk about safety. You couldn't be trusted with a lapdog, how could anyone trust you to protect these ladies from your friend the beast?"

"Well, they're very fortunate today, you see," Hatfield carried on conversationally. "My friend just ate his fill of roasted children's hearts the other day, so he's not in the mood for human flesh today. Something like a crocodile, you know? So how about it ladies, would you rather Gaston escort you or my friends over here?"

Ruby smiled at the man and nodded graciously. "Why thank you Jefferson, that would be delightful. Come along Belle, let me introduce you to Victor and his friends. It's been lovely meeting you, Sir Gaston."

Belle giggled and agreed, "Yes, thank you for the offer Gaston, but I think we have it handled."

She may be paying for this later...but as Gaston stiffly gave his goodbyes and stormed back through the hedges, Belle couldn't find it in herself to be sorry.

* * *

Prince David was a charming gentleman, but very bland. At least he had manners. In Belle's opinion, David was a lot like a good-natured sheepdog, loyal and kind and simple. Sir Frederick was very similar, down to the blonde hair, but a bit different in ways Belle couldn't pinpoint. Jefferson, it turned out, was a delightful eccentric who kept ribbing Ruby's secret lover Victor,-a sandy-haired young man of about seven and twenty,-who was quite a serious and studious fellow.

He seemed surprised that Belle had read his book (a treatise on the burial practices of Argrabah) and drew her into a conversation about it for some time after introductions had been made. Once or twice Belle felt that Victor was just testing her to see if she'd actually read it or not. Some nobles just had this notion that clever girls were more wit than well-read, but judging from how Ruby and Jefferson giggled like children, Belle was proven to be the superior scholar.

Because of this, Belle had quite forgotten about the fifth man sitting on the bench in the shade until the end of her discussion with Victor, when he held up his hands and said, "I submit! You are a worthy intellectual adversary, Lady Belle."

Jefferson chimed in, "If you really feel froggy, maybe you oughta get into a contest of riddles with Rum over there."

Belle looked up and finally noticed the silent man, who was looking at her now like she had a third eye. Which was odd because clearly he was the odd-looking one.

The man was rather small, not too much taller than Belle herself. He wore a high-collared red shirt and a leather vest that looked like it was made of alligator hide. leather breeches and tall, pointy-toed boots. Belle had never seen anyone dressed in such a manner, but she had also never seen someone with golden-gray scaled skin and large amber eyes before, either. His brown hair was a mess of wiry curls, and his fiddly fingertips were capped off with dark nails that looked more like claws. In his hands was a scrap of cloth he had been embroidering with a luminesce golden thread.

After what felt like a long time of staring, the man grinned. His teeth were ugly and sharp.

Belle blinked.

"How do you do, sir?" she nodded politely.

The man's grin faltered at her good manners. But he set the cloth aside and offered her something of a seated bow. "Quite well, m'lady. I commend you for getting Victor Frankenstein to back down from a scientific argument."

Belle was thoroughly unused to being praised for being smarter than a man. It took her a moment to realize he was talking to her, and Belle smiled shyly. "Thank you, I think."

Was this the beast Gaston had been talking about earlier? How strange: He was ugly and scaly, but he was better mannered than the knight was. Even appreciative of her mind. That put him in a very good place in Belle's book already.

* * *

Not long after Lady Belle arrived, Frederick had to leave. Ruby and Victor sat together on the grass enjoying each other's company while trying not to be too obvious. Even Jefferson knew at this point that they were practically engaged, and Victor had accused him of being addled...well he lost track of that. Maybe there was a seed of truth there.

Lady Belle had wound up standing a short distance from Rumpelstiltskin in the shade. It would seem that Belle, the tiny little thing, did not lack spirit. She had begun a contest of riddles with Rumpelstiltskin after all. The current one was posed by Rumpelstiltskin:

_"I never was, am always to be, no one ever saw me, nor ever will. And yet I am the confidence of all, to live and breathe on this terrestrial ball."_

Jefferson nudged David's leg with the toe of his boot, and the younger man turned to look at him from where he sat on the grass. David was a newcomer to their little circle, he'd missed The Milah Debacle and didn't realize how shuttered Rumpelstiltskin had been afterwards. (Word in the court was that Sir Henry's wife Cora had been his first love, which Jefferson didn't understand in the _least_.) But Jefferson could almost hear the wheels in the prince's head turning as he studied the picture the two made.

Lady Belle was as small as a mouse, with pretty chestnut curls and big blue eyes, wearing a pale rose walking dress. Rum was a wiry, scaly thing wearing his high-collared shirt and leathers, his hair a mess and a crooked smirk pulling at the corner of his mouth as the young woman puzzled over the difficult riddle.

"Is he happy?" David asked. "That's...unusual."

"Very," Jefferson grinned. "And unless my eyes deceive me, the lady isn't unhappy either."

"Yeah, but they just met Jefferson. That's not-"

"The future!" Belle answered at last, grinning at how Rum's face went slack a bit.

"That's...very good, Lady Belle," he nodded.

"Thank you, Sir," she curtsied with mock dignity, prompting another smile from Rumpelstiltskin.

David looked back at Jefferson and the hat-wearing noble grinned like a maniac. "Well?"

"You might be onto something here..."

* * *

Sir Maurice wasn't sure why Belle didn't like Gaston. He was tall, handsome, and well-spoken of. His father was a Duke, so Belle would be well-off, and it would open a healthy new trade-route for Avonlea. For the life of him, Maurice couldn't understand why his bright young daughter didn't approve of the boy. Neither had Colette, if he thought about it. How strange...

When Belle returned from her wanderings, she was in the company of Lady Ruby. Maurice would have thought that Gaston would have shown her around, but, even a brave young hunter like Gaston might've been wary of Countess Lucas's granddaughter. Belle had told him when she'd seen The Crossbow.

Either way, at the ball tomorrow, Maurice felt sure that his daughter would enjoy herself after her debut. Gaston had asked, again, to discuss her hand in marriage. Maurice was confident that Gaston was the right match for Belle, but he'd rather his daughter accept the proposal herself. Belle wasn't very social, she always had her nose stuck in a book. She wanted true love, dreamed of adventures, and for such an intelligent girl, his Belle was really quite girlish at times. No. Maurice would have to make some choices for Belle's own good, otherwise she'd end up a spinster in a library.

She'd regret that.

As Maurice was making his way down to dinner, he fell into step with Gaston. The younger man asked after Belle, (who had gone off with Ruby and her friend Ariel,) and seemed rather disappointed about missing her again.

"She's quite the beauty, your daughter," Gaston said. "I've never met a woman more fascinating than Belle. I only wish she weren't so wrapped up in those books. They give her the queerest ideas about things."

Maurice chuckled. "Eh, she's just like her mother was. I don't think my Colette went a day without turning a few pages of something." He missed the disapproval in the other man's tone completely. "Don't worry though, I'm sure you'll have your chance to monopolize my girl's attentions during the ball tomorrow. If you can tear her away from Lady Ruby and Princess Ariel, of course. Belle is a very pretty girl but she's not the most social creature. She doesn't have a lot of suitors, a shame really..."

A grinning young man appeared on the other side of Maurice as they passed through the doors of the dining hall.

"Oh I don't know," Jefferson strutted by them to take his place on the left of Victor. "Maybe she just hasn't met the right man yet."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have decided that Jefferson is the perfect shipper of the OUAT characters: He won't shut anybody in a closet here, but he and Charming definitely have their worked cut out for them!


	4. IV. The Court

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd like to thank _Once Upon a Time_ Season 5, Episode 17 "Her Handsome Hero" for this chapter. You've proven that Gaston is the manipulative and boorish jerk we long suspected and that Maurice is an ass who has no qualms about marrying Belle off when it's convenient.

Dinner was delicious to be sure, but Belle felt eyes on her in an uncomfortable way and was so glad Ariel was to her left. Ariel was wearing a pink gown with puffy sleeves at the top, and a pretty seashell ornament in her hair. She kept fiddling around with her fork (a dinner habit Belle had never understood,) and casting lovelorn glances at Prince Eric, a friend of Belle's who was equally charmed by Ariel. Fortunately Ariel was chatty enough to keep an eye on Eric and talk to Belle...

Otherwise Belle would be forced to pay more attention to Sir Gaston.

Belle was a fair charitable, kind person. But if she found out who, at a table seating one hundred people, managed to place Belle directly beside the only person she wanted to avoid: She would likely try to get them fired.

Gaston kept trying to turn the conversation to himself. He kept trying to talk about his latest hunting trip. He'd switched gears at one point and tried flattering Belle, laying it on thick and fast, about her beauty and her charm, and that was even more disgusting. Belle had tried once to engage him in a conversation about a book she thought would appeal to him, about a brave and true knight raised by a golden dragon, only to receive a snort and a derisive, "What ridiculous book is that? Dragons are vicious monsters, greedy treasure-hoarding lizards, there's nothing noble about them!"

So, Belle politely ignored him in favor of listening to Ariel's friendly chatter about, well, everything. And no one in society could say she was rude, because Jefferson of Hatfield was seated on the other side of Ariel and was just as chatty, picking up whenever Ariel left off. Belle was quite occupied without Gaston trying to make everything about himself and his dead animals.

The one person Belle didn't see at the dinner was Sir Rumpelstiltskin.

She was sure that Ruby said something about him being a noble while they were coming down to dinner. Ruby seemed very wary of him, but did admit if he'd befriended Victor and Jefferson he couldn't be that monstrous. A true monster would've eaten the both of them in frustration ages ago, Ruby giggled. The bare bones of the story was that Rumpelstiltskin had been taken under Midas's wing as a boy, raised as a noble, and made an occupation as the court tailor.

Belle was impressed, as most noblemen she'd met considered working with their hands vulgar and "middle classist". Ironic since some of them were land-rich and bankrupt and could use an honest job.

Jefferson finally mentioned, over a rich apple pudding desert, that Midas had an extensive library in the castle. Ariel giggled and said, "Oh you shouldn't have told Belle that Master Jefferson! Now we'll never get her away from a book!"

Gaston chuckled hollowly. "Indeed, it's most vexing when a woman pays more attention to a fantasy world than reality."

Ariel spared Gaston a look like he had said, "I enjoy skinning puppies for mittens." Jefferson effortlessly ignored Gaston and simply said, "I shall be happy to show you to the library Lady Belle, would you like to come too, Princess?"

Both girls accepted the invitations and Gaston spent the rest of the dinner in a sulky silence.

* * *

Rumpelstiltskin didn't often eat dinner in the grand dining hall. He was more comfortable eating in his workroom, or sometimes in the kitchens with Mrs. Potts. Nobody stared, he didn't have to worry about being judged for eating with the wrong fork, and even though Midas nor Abigail saw it that way, the guests preferred it that way too.

Besides, he wasn't particularly fit to be company right now. He had some thinking to do.

The radiant image of Lady Belle answering his riddle, unfaltering, so young and lovely and smart, kept creeping up on him. Rumpelstiltskin had seen her and Lady Ruby dissuade Gaston the Moron (a nickname that had caused Jefferson to snort tea out his nose the first time Rumpelstiltskin used it,) from joining them, and any woman clever enough to dislike the boorish dolt was A-Okay in Rumpelstiltskin's books. But that didn't mean she saw him as anything more than a bizarre-looking man that told funny riddles.

And he simply couldn't be smitten with her after just one afternoon.

Rumpelstiltskin knew he was not a lovable man. His friends liked him, but Victor and Jefferson were each as much of an outcast as himself. God knew why David hung around him, maybe some sort of gratitude for setting him up with Princess Snow White? ("Prince David, she _likes_ you. Ask her dance and stop steal my position of sulking in the corner.") He knew nothing of Lady Belle beyond her charming wit, her pretty face, and that she was a noble. A real noble. Daughter of a wealthy father, no doubt, who's debut at the ball would be followed by a throng of suitors eager to wed her.

He would be better off remembering he was at best the court tailor, and at worse, kind old Midas's charity project.

He had almost managed to remind himself of that when Prince David entered his work room. The fair-haired prince looked around at the one unfinished gown and the one finished on the dress-making dummies, the bolts of cloth, and the drawers that were close, half opened, and had their contents spilling out of the chests. Rumpelstiltskin supposed to an outsider his workroom was a mess, but to him, it was highly-organized chaos. Once David stopped gawking, he turned to Rumpelstiltskin where he sat sewing the lining into a cloak.

"Are you busy?"

David was nice, but he had the tact of a hammer: Direct with no subtlety.

"Why?" Rumpelstiltskin asked, putting down the needle.

"Victor wanted to talk to you, can you come to the library?"

If it were Jefferson asking him, Rumpelstiltskin would suspect some sort of trickery involved. But since it was David, who was about as honest and clean-cut as they came, and since Victor scarely asked Rumpelstiltskin for anything, it must've been mildly important. So he got up and followed the prince down to the library.

* * *

King Midas's library was fairly empty at this time of night. Most of the nobles were either chatting in the dining room still or one of the many, many parlors, abuzz with delight for tomorrow night's ball. It would be just like Victor to escape the public to hide out in the library, buried in a gruesome medical text. Or hiding in a certain alcove in the gardens with Lady Ruby...

"That's funny," David frowned at the empty library. "Victor said he'd wait here in the front. Well you go left and I'll go right, okay?"

His friend had walked off before Rumpelstiltskin could protest. With an annoyed huff, the scaly noble marched off to the left of the library, scanning the aisles of bookshelves for any sign of Victor. He was beginning to suspect some form of trick, and was about to turn around and leave.

Instead, he nearly crashed into Lady Belle.

Lady Belle was wearing a gown now, some of her curls pinned up but the rest curling down loosely. The golden yellow gown suited her flawless skin, with full silky skirts and a fitted bodice that laced up in the back. The neckline was low and wide, falling off her shoulders, curving over the small swell of her bust. There was a simple pearl pendant hanging from a chain around her neck, looking simply perfect.

For her part, the tiny brunette hugged a large book to her chest, biting her lip as she looked up at Rumpelstiltskin. He was wearing the same clothes as he'd worn in the garden, and Belle recalled that she hadn't seen him at dinner. He was knighted, or a noble to some degree, and that struck Belle as unusual that he wouldn't be at dinner. He stared at her like she'd dropped out of the sky and when he took a step back, Belle thought he might run from her. How odd.

Belle smiled at long last, trying not to look...threatening, she supposed. She didn't feel threatening. She felt shy. But her mother's favorite saying had been, "Do the brave thing, and bravery will follow." So...

"Hello again, Sir Rumpelstiltskin. I didn't see you at dinner."

"Ah...Lady Belle," he nodded. (Well, a sharp jerk of his head that Belle chose to take as a nod. "I'm not...welcomed, at the table very often. No great loss, really, as I've never quite figured out which fork to eat what meat with."

Belle giggled. "My mother said just do what everyone else in the room does. But I don't even know why you have to have different spoons for soup _and_ bouillon. What's the difference?"

The golden-skinned man snickered, his fidgety hands clasped behind his back as he rocked back on his heels. He couldn't seem to stand still for long, and he stayed at a respectable distance, and quite honestly Belle found his nervousness and shyness to be better than the overconfident assurance most men felt when talking to her. It was...sweet.

"Thank you for the advice then, my lady," Rumpelstiltskin. "Though I wouldn't know the difference myself. Perhaps there's a cookery book in here we should find the answer in."

Belle grinned. "An excellent idea. Shall we?"

"Shall we what?" Rumpelstiltskin blinked.

"Find a cookery book or something. Where would those sort of books be kept?"

Rumpelstiltskin stared at her with large amber eyes and a blank look on his face, utterly confused.

And after a long moment, Belle suddenly felt fear bubbling up in her stomach. No man, not even her father, particularly cared for her love of the written word. One of her governesses even went so far as to say that no one wants a bookish girl, no man wants a wife who thinks she's more clever than him. That seemed very unfair to Belle then, and now, but she'd enjoyed talking to Rumpelstiltskin and it just sort of slipped out. It was a stupid idea, for all she knew, he was joking and meant nothing by it. Dare she say it, he may have been flirting with her.

"I...suppose they would be near the books related to homemaking," Rumpelstiltskin said slowly, pointing at some obscure direction to the left. "Fashions, botany and gardening, that sort of thing."

Belle bit her lip. "Well...shall we?"

It only took a short moment before the odd-looking nobleman nodded quickly. "If you wish, uh, m'lady. Of course."

He offered her his arm and Belle giggled as she complied. Sir Rumpelstiltskin was twitching around like a nervous page faced with his first love, and she couldn't help but grow a little more fond of his shyness.

And Rumpelstiltskin was just trying to keep his heart from bursting in his chest when she touched him with a soft little hand, a beautiful, sunny smile on Belle's kind face.

And David and Jefferson peeked around a bookshelf as the pair went off, grinning from ear to ear.

* * *

"What?" Ruby blinked, positive she'd misheard Victor.

The soon-to-be-engaged couple was sitting in the library the morning of the debutant ball. Ruby sat on the table while Victor sat at the chair, holding some medical text open on his lap. Her near-fiancé nodded towards Belle, who was standing by a shelf with her own book (no surprise there,) talking to Rumpelstiltskin quite animatedly (which was surprising). But then Victor said the most ridiculous thing and she was positive she'd misheard him.

"Jefferson and David want to match Rum with Belle. What do you think?"

Ruby looked at the pair again. Twice.

As far as noblemen go, Ruby could be honest and say that Rumpelstiltskin wasn't the worst of the lot. He was hideous to be sure, short and skinny with nasty teeth. He was as antisocial as a hermit, and when he did try socializing he usually ended up scaring people off with that trilling voice he did sometimes and his bizarre sense of humor. But, again, if she were honest, Ruby wasn't sure that it wasn't a defensive mechanism to keep people at a distance. Victor did something similar, but he just acted aloof and snarky. And to his credit, Rumpelstiltskin did have a tidy little fortune he earned himself and did have a degree of courtesy for people when they weren't openly hostile to him. Ruby wasn't his friend by any means but she didn't harbor ill-will towards him either.

And hell, Granny even had an understanding with him. That spoke volumes about a man's character.

_But for Belle?_

"I don't see it," she admitted. "But she does look happier than she does with any of the tall, dark, and handsome suitors her father keeps pushing at her."

"Why would a tall man make Belle happy?" Victor puzzled. "She's hardly chin-high on Jefferson. I keep thinking Gaston will crush her whenever he tries to hold her hand."

"You and me both," Ruby rolled her eyes, giving her friend one more appraising look.

Belle did look happy. Completely relaxed, chattering about whatever book it was now. And Rumpelstiltskin's eyes weren't glazed over, and he didn't look like he was humoring her. He looked thoroughly besotted, actually, hanging on her every word.

Well...

Stranger things had happened.

"What about Sir Maurice?" Ruby asked.

Victor squeezed her hand. "He's a decent guy, right? Maybe he'll understand. I mean he wants Belle to marry, and he keeps letting her turn down suitors, so why not?"

Ruby smiled, squeezing his hand back. Unfortunately, her beloved didn't know Maurice very well.

Ruby just hoped that Jefferson had a crazy idea for convincing the old knight; Otherwise they'd set up two people for an undeserved heartbreak...

* * *

Rumpelstiltskin had Lady Belle walking by his side through the rose gardens, still going on excitedly about the ice-centric customs of Arendelle, and he couldn't quite take the smile off his face. Lady Belle was possibly the most well-read noble he had ever met, but still quite clever on her own. That was a trick. Most noblewomen who were called clever had just read one or two of her father's books and played it off as wit.

Apparently, it was not her father, but her mother, that Lady Belle inherited her love of learning. Lady Colette had created a large, varied library in Avonlea open to the public, even after her untimely death. The reason Belle had not debuted last year with her other friends was because of this unfortunate death, and Rumpelstiltskin wasn't entirely sure how to express sympathy over that.

"I'm sorry to hear that," he blurted. "I've never really had a family, so I can't imagine losing someone you love so much, and they love you back."

He wished he'd shut up as soon as the words left his mouth.

But Lady Belle just bit her lip, looking at him curiously. Then she smiled. "Thank you."

"You are..." Not required to thank me for pointing out the obvious? Too kind? Beautiful? "...welcome."

They stopped for a moment then, by a dark green bush laden with pale pink roses. One of them had been snapped at the stem, somehow, and was hanging limply. Rumpelstiltskin plucked it off the branch and twirled it between his fingers for a moment. "For you, m'lady," he managed to say levelly, holding the bloom out to the pretty brunette. "If you'll have it?"

Belle stared at the flower for a long moment. "A Maiden Blush?"

"Pardon?" Rumpelstiltskin blinked, looking like he was ready to throw it down if she reacted poorly. (He really was a nervous man beneath the swagger, wasn't he?)

Belle bit her lip, plucking it from his fingers and trying to tamp down a giggle. "Maiden Blush roses, they were my mother's favorites. She said they had a special meaning, all flowers do, you know. Those white roses there mean _'I am worthy of you'_ , and those burgundy roses mean _'unconscious beauty'_."

Rumpelstiltskin tapped the fingers of his right hand together, pointing at a pretty lavender rosebush. "And those?"

" _Enchantment_ ," Belle replied. "And a musk rose means _'capricious beauty'_ , but a cluster means _'charming'_."

"I imagine a bouquet of roses sent to you would be a full rainbow," her companion smiled, then shyly looked away, his scaled cheeks darkening. "Ah...so, what did I just say?"

"That I have a lot of good qualities, or with this one rose here?"

It may have been a little cruel to tease, but Belle couldn't resist. The blush darkened on Rumpelstiltskin's face as he summoned the courage to look at her. Well, her chin at least. "Let's...focus on the rose, please?"

The little giggle finally escaped Belle, and she ran a finger along the silky edge of the petals. "If you come to the ball tonight, I will tell you. It doesn't have to be long, I mean you don't seem like you'd enjoy big parties, but-"

"Yes."

"What?"

"I will be there," Rumpelstiltskin nodded quickly, then caught himself and tried to settle back into an indifferent pose. "I mean I can't very well let you leave it there. I need to know if I have to apologize or, say, owe you money now."

Belle laughed again, the rose tapping her nose as her head fell forwards.

Suddenly a big hand curled around her upper arm and pulled her back, a wall of coat blocking her vision as the very last voice she wanted to hear growled, "There you are Belle, you're father's been worried about you. I see he had a right to be."

"Oh save me your machismo," Rumpelstiltskin huffed, sounding every bit as annoyed as Belle was. "Sir Gaston, I do believe if Lady Belle felt she were in danger, she would have no qualms about resolving the situation herself."

"Belle!" Maurice's arms came around her and drew her further away from her companion. "Oh darling, I've been looking all over for you! I haven't seen you since dinner last evening, how-What is that?"

Belle was dangerously approaching the end of her patience. Maurice pushed her behind him and he gaped at Rumpelstiltskin like he was a full-grown dragon instead of a small man in a high-collared coat. Belle imagined that if he or Gaston had them, swords would be drawn and pointed at Rumpelstiltskin's throat. Ugh.

The gold-skinned gentleman seemed to be just as fed up. He gave a flourishing mockery of a courtly bow to Maurice and grinned broadly. "Sir Maurice of Avonlea, I presume, lovely to meet you at last. The name is Sir Rumpelstiltskin, how do you do?"

"What are you?" Maurice gasped. "Some sort of imp? Belle, what does he want?"

"I want to say that I can talk for my bloody own self, thank you!"

"Father! Please don't be so rude," Belle groaned. "Sir Rumpelstiltskin is a member of King Midas's court, he was just walking me through the rose garden."

" _Unchaperoned_?"

Belle resisted the urge to remind her scandalized father that he practical threw her out the stables to walk unchaperoned with Gaston the first time they met. "Jefferson of Hatfield was with us until a few minutes ago. I honestly don't know where he wandered off too."

"Neither does he, probably," Rumpelstiltskin added, and that seemed to be the only thing he'd said so far that Maurice could agree with. Gaston on the other hand...

"Oh a madman is your witness to your honorable conduct, how convenient," Gaston sniffed. "Sir Maurice, perhaps you should take Belle back to the castle and away from this scoundrel."

Rumpelstiltskin's jaw tightened and he stood up a little taller, spreading out his hands. He seemed to grow a foot with the gesture. "No need, I shall be on my own way. Sir Maurice, Gustav."

"That's Gaston-" the taller man tried to correct.

"And Lady Belle," he bobbed politely, a blank mask firmly in place. "I apologize for any trouble I may have caused you. Good day."

And he marched out the gardens like a cold winter breeze.

Belle clutched her rose tighter, numb to how Maurice wrapped an arm around her and tugged her down another path back to the castle. Gaston was still there, and Belle wasn't sure when her eyes actually registered him, strutting beside them like the lone rooster in a full henhouse.

"Don't worry about him Belle," Maurice was tutting. "He won't bother you again, dear. I'll see to it. He probably isn't even invited to the ball, he won't ruin your evening."

"He's just the court freak, of course he isn't invited," Gaston boasted, looking far too smug.

And that was the last straw. Belle wriggled from under her father's arm and stopped both men in their tracks with a glare. In a better mood she might've been amused at how two such big men would freeze in the face of such a tiny woman. Not now, though. Now she was too mad.

"Father, you will leave Sir Rumpelstiltskin alone because he did not bother me, he would not ruin my evening, and I did invite him to the ball myself," she shifted the full ire of her gaze on Gaston. "And you will do well to remember that I don't owe you the time of day! The only man who is bothering me in the gardens is named Sir Gaston the Hunter and with that I wish the both of you a good day only on the grounds of courtesy!"

She stomped in as ladylike a fashion as she could up to her rooms in the castle and Ruby and Ariel somehow fell in step beside her, closing the door herself and preventing Belle from slamming it. Shame about that.

"So...what happened?" Ariel asked.

Belle plopped down on the bench at the vanity, keeping her back to the mirror. She didn't want to see her own scowl, thank you. "I went for a walk in the rose garden with Sir Rumpelstiltskin."

Ariel perked up. "Did you? I was wondering where you were, I thought you would still be holed up in the library that Jefferson showed us yesterday. People say he's mad but I think he's just eccentric, y'know, sort of like Aunt Ursula's friend, the Countess of Heller? And he dresses nicely, not many noblemen-"

"So what happened in the gardens for you to come back with a rose and a scowl?" Ruby cut off Ariel mid-rant, sitting on the little spot left on the bench. Belle only took half of it up, even with her skirts spread out. "Because if he did something to upset you, Granny wouldn't mind introducing him to The Crossbow."

Belle smiled wanly at her friends. "Sir Rumpelstiltskin was nothing but a gentleman. Actually, he was shy. He offered me the rose, despite looking like I was going to bite him."

"Oh that makes sense," Ariel chirped. "The last girl he was courting was Lady Milah. She was a lady only in title, well, not anymore either, 'cause she ran off with a pirate. She and her father were fortune-hunting for someone with a heavy purse to sink into their estate. She probably did bite him."

That was...sad. Rumpelstiltskin seemed so nice and shy, how could a woman be so cruel to him? Belle put that though aside to ponder later. "Well, I accepted the rose. And I did not bite him. And then I may have invited him to see me at the ball tonight...and he said he would-"

"Does your father know?" Ruby cut in. "No wait, of course he does. He's the only man besides Gaston that can make you stomp like a mad bull."

"You win on both accounts," Belle huffed. "They jumped in like I was being ravished in the flowerbeds and insulted him until he left, and then they had the nerve to act like he was the one bothering me. Ugh! The one time I chose a nobleman to dance with me at a ball and my father completely loses his mind!"

Ariel had her own overprotective father, and she agreed with a sigh, flopping down on Belle's bed. "That's just how fathers are."

Ruby on the other hand: "You chose him? Belle...do you like this guy?"

Belle flushed.

Leave it to Ruby to read the entire alphabet in a single letter. Darn her.

"I...I like him," Belle admitted. "I mean I don't know if I love him or not, but he's kind and clever and he likes that I read. And think. And have opinions. He makes me feel respected instead of objectified. So...maybe?"

Ruby's grin made Belle feel the teeniest bit like a cornered rabbit face with a wolf.

"I'll make sure he's at the dance tonight. All you have to do is show up with that rose. Maybe get Astrid to put it in your hair somehow."

"Wh-why the rose? What are you going to do Ruby?" Belle blinked warily, unconsciously reaching for her flower.

The tall brunette leapt to her feet with a twirl, placing her hand over her heart theatrically. "Why my dear Belle! Just call me your fairy godmother!"

* * *

Jefferson crushed Ruby in a mildly improper hug as she informed him on her plan, spinning her around before setting her on her feet again.

"Welcome aboard Lady Ruby, so glad you could join us!

David grinned at his friend's antics, Victor looked mildly miffed that Jefferson had his hands on his lady. Ariel, who had also joined in what Jefferson had dubbed "Get Rum hitched" (and was subsequently redubbed by David as "Operation Happy Ending",) just looked happy to be here. Ruby said she had an important job for her, and if there was one thing Ariel knew about Ruby, it was that her harebrained schemes generally had a few good points.

And so the full party settled in to plan how to get Rumpelstiltskin and Belle together at the ball in a few short hours...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Why yes, Jefferson is the Captain of the SS Rumbelle. Ruby is first-mate and Charming the helmsman. X)


	5. V. The Ball

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *blows dust off everything*
> 
> Wow. That only took forever. So quite honestly, I started this story strong and then lost interest in it after chapter four. I don't *hate* it, but I just didn't know where to take it next. There should only be one more chapter to finish it off, (whenever that might be,) so that's something at least. ':)

Astrid had taken over as ladies maid when her first maid, Babette, got married and left. Belle was quite capable of fixing her own hair and lacing up her own corset, (she preferred the latter on her own, actually, because she could actually breathe when she was all in,) but her father had hired Astrid on before she could object. Besides, Astrid was good company.

"Ooh, what a pretty rose! I know just the trick too! Um, hold please Lady Belle?"

Belle obligingly held the Maiden Blush rose for Astrid as the wispy brunette darted to the bags she'd packed for hair styling supplies, narrowly avoiding a tumble over a foot stool. The maid had already brushed out Belle's long chestnut curls, but not so much that her curls had gone frizzy though. (Which was a hazard of curly hair that Belle wished could be avoided.) Belle believed in deciding ones own fate, of course, but she smiled as she took in the contrast of the pale pink rose against her light blue gown. They looked perfectly matched and that thought had her smiling like an idiot for some reason.

Astrid came back and set to work pinning up Belle's curls in a loose bun. Once secure, she took the rose from Belle and snapped the stem short, sticking the trimmed flower so that it somehow stayed perfectly in place beside the mass of the hairstyle, not budging as Belle turned her head.

"It's perfect! Thank you Astrid, it looks just wonderful!"

Astrid grinned back. "I'm proud of it myself! You'll be turning heads all evening looking like that!"

Ruby knocked and entered with the span of a few short seconds, (she never much cared for waiting, that girl,) and immediately cooed over the rose in Belle's hair. "Oh Astrid, you're magic! I don't suppose you'd consider abandoning your post in the Marchlands, would you?"

"Oh you won't steal her away Lady Ruby," Belle mock-chided, smoothing her skirts as she stood up. "She's going to marry a groundskeeper back home."

Astrid blushed a bright shade of pink, dropping a hairbrush. "O-oh! Well, I mean-"

"Ah well," Ruby hummed. "In that case, could you give my maid some pointers before you leave court? She's a sweet girl and good with gowns, but she's not very imaginative with my hair. Ah well, rich lady problems I suppose. You did great work anyway Astrid, never let them say a ladies maid isn't an artist!"

Astrid giggled, still blushing, as she picked up her hairbrush. "Thank you, Lady Ruby."

Ruby hooked her arm through Belle's. The taller lady wore a strapless red gown with white lace over the flared skirts, black slippers to match her elbow-length gloves, and her hair set with sparkling silver combs. If Belle was going to turn heads then Ruby was going to break necks, Belle thought to herself with a grin, trying to keep pace with Ruby's larger stride as they left the room and headed down the hall.

"Granny's happy to present you at the ceremony," Ruby said. "She said something along the lines of 'she's as dear as a second granddaughter to me, and it's the least I could do'. I think she means it, but if it also keeps your father from steering you into Gaston's arms afterwards, she's all for it."

Belle giggled. It would seem that her father was the only person close to her that wanted her to marry Gaston. "Then I shall be sure to tell her how grateful I am. And did she bring The Crossbow?"

Ruby smiled.

"She never leaves home without it."

* * *

Rumpelstiltskin stayed to the back of the room during the presentation ceremony. He was dressed in his best clothes: A golden brown coat with a high collar and long tails, with polished brass buttons and a blue brocade vest with shimmery gold embroidery, deep brown trousers, and tall, shiny leather boots with sharply pointed toes. With his arms crossed and leaning against the back wall of the throne room, he almost blended into the tan stone wall as he watched debutant after debutant be dragged before King Midas, with his daughter Abigail sitting demurely nearby, acting as Queen in the ceremony.

He'd never understood presenting one's daughter to the King and (acting) Queen. So they'd seen the ruling family. So what? Did that boost one's social standing so much? The King wasn't likely to remember your name, he wouldn't pull favors for you because of the ceremony. The ball he could understand, and he could even understand wanting to debut your daughter at court for all the eligible young men to see. But why show them to the King?

Rumpelstiltskin supposed he could understand better if he attended these events more often, but that would involve socialization and that wouldn't do at all. Nope.

The Countess Lucas, Lady Ruby's formidable grandmother, wearing a dark green dress he'd once repaired the pale gray-green silk trim on, was presenting a slip of a girl he identified in a moment as Lady Belle, who apparently didn't have any other female family members to trot her out. (That was something else: Why have someone present the girl if she was supposed to be an adult?) It took Rumpelstiltskin a minute to recognize Belle because her hair was completely up.

He sort of liked the loose curls falling around her shoulders...but he couldn't complain about her appearance.

She was _stunning_ in her pale blue gown, a creamy sky blue like her eyes, with a lacy white panel at the front of her bodice edged with golden ribbon, and a similar design on the front of her skirt, two gold-edged blue pieces forming a tapered, upside-down V shape over white lace, reaching down to her ankles to show off her pretty golden slippers. There was a story about a memorable pair of glass slippers, but Rumpelstiltskin couldn't think of any way they could be prettier than those little golden shoes with the two inch heel that elevate the tiny woman just so...gods above, was that his rose in her hair?

Rumpelstiltskin swallowed thickly, unable to hear the slightest bit of what was said at the front of the throne room and only vaguely aware of someone announcing that the presentation was over and if they would all move to the ballroom, please, so that the festivities may commence now. Rumpelstiltskin focused on the flashes of light blue and the odd glimpse of that pretty flower constantly being covered up by taller people moving to leave the room. He was one of the last to leave, and with single-minded determination, followed after the newly-presented noblewoman.

He was going to find out what the meaning of a Maiden Blush rose was.

* * *

The ball was in full-swing and Belle had been fortunate, for a full half hour, to be happily tucked away on her own with Ruby, Ariel, and Princess Snow White. They chatted about lords and gowns and overprotective fathers and laughed over Ariel's account of nearly falling into the sea when she last boarded a ship. Belle didn't mind at all that Ruby excused herself and was seen not ten minutes later twirling around on Victor's arm. Snow and Belle then proceeded to encourage Ariel to accept the invitation from Prince Eric to dance.

(Poor Ariel, she was so hopelessly smitten with that man she couldn't even speak to him properly, but fortunately an equally smitten Prince Eric was nervously chattering away as a humorous compensation.)

Aproblem arose, afterwards, when Belle's father slid up to her side and asked for a dance. Belle happily indulged him, thinking it was just that: A father-daughter dance. But after the song ended, a voice behind her just made Belle want to slap her papa upside the head.

"Sir Maurice, might I cut in?"

"Certainly Gaston," Maurice grinned too broadly, and Belle had never felt so betrayed in all her life. "Here you are Belle, you two have fun."

She was lightly pushed into the arms of the hulking giant and yanked into a waltz before Belle could say a word against it. She looked down at her toes, very careful to keep them from under Gaston's big feet, or maybe she was careful not to step on his. Probably the latter, Belle was almost as clumsy as Astrid, especially at dancing when her steps were so much smaller than all of her dancing partners. She was hyperaware of Gaston's big paw of a hand sliding down the small of her back and her anger began to boil.

"You look beautiful tonight, Belle," Gaston said smoothly. "Blue brings out your eyes."

"Well, my eyes _are_ blue, thank you," she said, perhaps a bit curtly but...well her eyes were blue! Didn't he notice that? Of course not-Belle didn't have much in the way of a bust but men of Gaston's stock had difficulty looking at a woman above her mouth and below her hips. Silly her for thinking otherwise.

"A very lovely shade, at that," he pressed on, his fingers very nearly touching her bottom. Oh bother.

"I've spoken to your father-" oh _double_ bother, "-and he's quite in favor of a match between us," Gaston smiled in that probably charming way again, but Belle's stomach soured. "Naturally he should be, of course. Our sons would be wise, powerful rulers of Avonlea and my own territory. You're a woman of substance Belle, I am a man of action. Don't you think we'd be a perfect match?"

_'If today were Opposite Day perhaps...'_

"No. You are a man of action and prefer the outdoors and hunting, of all creatures," Belle tried to wiggle some distance between them but Gaston's hold was too tight. "And I'm a lady that prefers a sunny window and a book to read alone on a quiet afternoon. I think we would drive each other mad."

Gaston's nose crinkled at the word "book" and Belle wondered if he'd ever seen deeper than the cover of one before. "You and those books," he tutted. "You read too much Belle, you have silly fantasies and unrealistic expectations for your life. When we are married you'll find a more ladylike hobby to pursue. Needlework perhaps, or maybe painting. My mother enjoys a bit of painting, perhaps she could give you a few pointers when she arrives to help with the wedding. She want to give you a hand since your mother is no longer with us-"

The dance ended at that moment, thankfully, and Belle was able to dart away, giving his broad chest a good shove.

_You read too much? Unrealistic expectations? When we are married?_

"It doesn't seem unrealistic to me to want respect from a future husband," she tilted her chin defiantly. "And before you plan our entire lives, _Sir_ , you had best remember that I'm still a free woman. And that reminding me of my dead mother is a horrid lapse of judgement if you want to have me as a bride. Good evening!"

Belle stormed back to her corner, debating whether or not she should ditch the ball and just go read in the library, or give her father a large piece of her mind...

* * *

She was dancing with Sir Gaston.

Rumpelstiltskin had thought Belle may have wanted to see him at this ball. He could almost believe that she seemed excited by the idea of him attending.

Apparently her excitement had an expiration date, or more likely, he had been mistaken. Noblewomen, no matter how pretty or seemingly kind, preferred tall, handsome youth to scaly little goblins like himself. Apparently. Lady Belle was no different...

Only then the stately waltz ended and something more upbeat began, and the tiny noblewoman squirmed away like an eel caught in Gaston's grip then swept away from the dullard. So...she _hadn't_ wanted to dance? Rumpelstiltskin supposed he shouldn't have been so pleased about that...from a bigger person standpoint. But he was short, so bugger that.

Moving around the edge of the room to the corner Belle had taken up. She was with Princess Snow White, who was patting her shoulder and saying something about her father. Something like, _"Don't be too hard on him."_   Well that was easy for her to say; Snow White was a daddy's girl in the original sense, the apple of King Leopold's eye, and the king could do no wrong in her eyes.

(He also wasn't trying to marry her off to a lummox twice her size...Leopold was a big believer in that marry-for-love school of matchmaking.)

A sudden bout of nerves flipped Rumpelstiltskin's stomach and he nearly turned around when Belle's bright blue eyes caught his. Maybe he was still wrong, maybe she wasn't that interested in meeting with him. Why was he even doing this? Flowers weren't nearly that interesting. A rose by any other name, right?

"Sir Rumpelstiltskin!" Belle chirped with a sunny smile. "You came!"

Rumpelstiltskin rocked back on his heels, clasping his hands behind his back. "Yes, yes, ah, good evening Lady Belle... _Princess_."

Snow White flinched when he acknowledged her, and that made him smile. It was always fun to make nobles scurry like mice, petty as that was.

Belle, brave little thing _she_ was, just smiled back a bit wider. (She was dazzling, and Rumpelstiltskin seldom used that word.) Snow swallowed and attempted to put a hand on Belle, but before she could, Belle had stepped forward and taken Rumpelstiltskin's arm. He wasn't sure if he or Snow White were more shocked by that.

But then the little lady was pulling him aside and he really couldn't care what that princess though. For he, the ugliest creature in the court, had Belle, the loveliest woman, on his arm.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And the next update will be...I dunno when. I'm in a muddling stage at the moment, nothing's really getting done even though I'm doing something. It's odd.
> 
> *jabs Muse with a stick*
> 
> Thank you for reading, please comment! Maybe it'll give me some direction for the last bit.


End file.
